Dwarfism is a condition wherein an organism is exceptionally small, and mostly occurs in the animal kingdom. In humans, it is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than 147 centimetres, regardless of sex; the average adult height among people with dwarfism is 122 centimetres, although some individuals with dwarfism are slightly taller. Disproportionate dwarfism is characterized by either short limbs or a short torso. In cases of proportionate dwarfism, both the limbs and torso are unusually small. Intelligence is usually normal, and most have a nearly normal life expectancy. People with dwarfism can usually bear children, though there are additional risks to the mother and child dependent upon the underlying condition.
A Munchkin is a native of the fictional Munchkin Country in the Oz books by American author L. Frank Baum. They first appear in the classic children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) where they welcome Dorothy Gale to their city in Oz. The Munchkins are described as being the same height as Dorothy and they wear only shades of blue clothing, as blue is the Munchkins' favorite color. Blue is also the predominating color that officially represents the eastern quadrant in the Land of Oz. The Munchkins have appeared in various media, including the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, as well as in various other films and comedy acts.
Charles Sherwood Stratton, better known by his stage name "General Tom Thumb", was an American dwarf who achieved great fame as a performer under circus pioneer P. T. Barnum.
A humbug is a person or object that behaves in a deceptive or dishonest way, often as a hoax or in jest. The term was first described in 1751 as student slang, and recorded in 1840 as a "nautical phrase". It is now also often used as an exclamation to describe something as hypocritical nonsense or gibberish.
Mercy Lavinia Warren Stratton was an American proportionate dwarf, who was a circus performer and the wife of Charles Sherwood Stratton. She was known as a performer and for her appearance in one silent film, The Lilliputians Courtship (1915).
Midgetville refers to real or legendary communities of "midgets", people with forms of dwarfism who are normally proportioned, or collections of small "midget-sized" houses. Real or legendary, they are at times given fanciful qualities. Some "real" ones may play on mythology for tourism purposes. Hence some descriptions are not meant to imply anything concerning ordinary or real people with dwarfism.
Barnum's American Museum was located at the corner of Broadway, Park Row, and Ann Street in what is now the Financial District of Manhattan, New York City, from 1841 to 1865. The museum was owned by famous showman P. T. Barnum, who purchased Scudder's American Museum in 1841. The museum offered both strange and educational attractions and performances. Some were extremely reputable and historically or scientifically valuable, while others were less so.
The Tom Thumb House is a historic house in Middleborough, Massachusetts. The 21⁄2 story wood-frame house was built in the 1870s as a summer home for the dwarf entertainer Charles Stratton, best known by his stage name, General Tom Thumb. It has Second Empire architecture, including a mansard roof, paired brackets in the cornice, and paired columns supporting the porch. The interior was built to meet the needs of the 3-foot-4-inch (102 cm) Stratton and his wife Lavinia, who was also a proportionate dwarf (midget,) however, few of its miniaturized features have survived.
Huldah Pierce Warren Bump, better known as Minnie Warren, was an American proportionate dwarf and an entertainer associated with P. T. Barnum. Her sister Lavinia Warren was married to General Tom Thumb. They were very well known in 1860s America and their meeting with Abraham Lincoln was covered in the press.
George Washington Morrison Nutt, better known by his stage name Commodore Nutt, was an American dwarf and an entertainer associated with P. T. Barnum. In 1861, Nutt was touring New England with a circus when Barnum hired him to appear at the American Museum in New York City. Barnum gave Nutt the stage name Commodore Nutt, a wardrobe that included naval uniforms, and a miniature carriage in the shape of an English walnut. Nutt became one of the Museum's major attractions.
A freak show, also known as a creep show, is an exhibition of biological rarities, referred to in popular culture as "freaks of nature". Typical features would be physically unusual humans, such as those uncommonly large or small, those with intersex variations, those with extraordinary diseases and conditions, and others with performances expected to be shocking to viewers. Heavily tattooed or pierced people have sometimes been seen in freak shows, as have attention-getting physical performers such as fire-eating and sword-swallowing acts.
Leopold von Singer was an Austrian-born American manager of an entertainment troupe called Singer's Midgets, that were a popular vaudeville group in the first half of the twentieth century. He was responsible for casting many performers in the iconic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz.
Patrick Walshe was an American dwarf character actor and circus performer who specialized in impersonating and portraying animals. He is best known for playing Nikko, the head of the Winged Monkeys in the MGM film The Wizard of Oz (1939). He appeared in only a few films, as most of his work was in theater, vaudeville and circus. Throughout his vaudeville career, he was a frequent collaborator of Lew Fields and Joe Cook.
Edmund Newell, better known as General Grant Jr. or Major Edward Newell, was a 19th-century dwarf who gained fame as an associate of P. T. Barnum. He was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Edmund S. Newell and Sarah Ellen Jimmerson.
Jakob "Jackie" Gerlich was born in Vienna as Leo Fuks, the third son of Regina and Abraham Fox He was a circus entertainer most notable for his appearance in the 1939 American film The Wizard of Oz.
Clarence Chesterfield Howerton, also known as Major Mite, was an American circus performer who starred in the sideshow for over 25 years, 20 of which were with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. He was 2 ft 4 in (0.71 m) tall and performed with several groups from the early 1920s through the late 1940s, billed as the smallest man in the world. His small physique was often contrasted alongside larger circus sideshow acts, such as the juvenile obese and the excessively tall.
George F. Brasno was an American actor who appeared in a few films through the 1930s and 1940s. He and his sister Olive Brasno were first recognized as a brother and sister little-people singing team in a partnership with Buster Shaver's vaudeville act. He was also billed as George Shaver.
Olive Brasno was a [dwarf]] dancer and actress who was known for her song and dance act with her brother, George. She also appeared in a few films through the 1930s and 1940s.
Francis "Frank" "Cookie" Cucksey was an America actor, singer, and circus performer, best known for his role as a Munchkin in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz.
